


Consequences

by cecania



Series: The Misadventures of Eerie- Part Two: Outlands [3]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: F/M, Original Character(s), changing canon, ulric siblings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-09-07
Packaged: 2018-12-23 14:09:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11991426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cecania/pseuds/cecania
Summary: Insomnia fell and against all odds he's somehow alive. Insomnia fell and against all odds she found him. But finding him was only half the solution. He's still dying and she has no idea where his sister is but she's determined to find her.(A fic in which Nyx survives Insomnia's fall. Takes place a day after Alive.)





	1. Help

 

            Choking down her sobs, Liv briefly considered shoving her face into the sink full of water. It was a stupid thought she couldn’t stop from forming. Not with everything that had happened recently. How her life had been turned upside down so fast she didn’t know. Between recent events and her emotions, she was exhausted. But she couldn’t stop here. Neither of them could afford it.

            She wiped her hands against her skirt and ignored her reflection. When Nyx had told her to leave the city before the signing, she’d told him no and meant it. But a nagging feeling in her gut had had her packing a bag with essentials, just in case. She'd taken it with her that day even though she hadn't gone into work. She had gone back to his apartment to wait for him to come home. Instead the city had started falling around her. She had grabbed it and a few things from his place without hesitation. Now everything she owned was in that car; their clothes, her phone, a modest amount of gil, and a few bathroom things.

            Not nearly enough for two people to survive outside of the city on. Provided he actually survived.

            Her hands slammed on either side of the sink as her body lurched. No. He was going to be fine. She couldn’t believe anything else. She couldn’t give up on him. She wasn’t giving up on him.

            She gulped in several breaths of air, squeezing her eyes shut and wondering if she should move back to the toilet. She couldn’t think about it right now. If she thought about it, she was going to lose all the progress she had made. Grabbing her phone from beside the sink, she called a number she had memorized in the last day. “Shit,” she whispered as it dumped to voice mail again and she hung up after the first word. Hearing Eerie’s voice on a recording was not what she wanted right now.

            Liv gathered her few things and shoved them back into her bag. They hadn’t made it far out of the city, most people hadn’t, but there was a fork in the road and she didn’t have time to waste on the wrong direction. However, she still didn’t have an answer of which way to go.

            General chatter filled the air as she left the bathroom, the diner not completely full but busy enough. She’d already glanced at the people inside to see if there were any familiar faces. It was a futile effort. Hammerhead was the first stop outside of Insomnia and everyone was coming through the small town. The odds of her recognizing anyone were slim to none.

            Moving to the counter, she waited as the tipster finished helping another person before turning to her.

            “You sure you don’t want to sit for a bit?” he asked, looking her over.

            “Can’t,” she said honestly. “I need to find someone.”

            “Not always the best idea to keep moving if you’re looking for someone.”

            She knew that but she didn’t have a choice. She could probably get help from someone else, but she wouldn’t trust them to do anything other than look at him and say he was a lost cause. Eyra wouldn’t do that; she would dig in and use everything that she had to help him. She needed that, the stubbornness and love that wouldn’t let her do anything else.

            But she had to find Eerie first.

            The tipster watched her dig through her purse as he put her order on the counter and she was glad she’d actually remembered they used a different currency out here. She didn’t have a lot of it but hopefully it would be enough to get her to wherever she needed to go.

            “You take care of yourself, miss,” he told her after she’d paid.

            She nodded, taking the bag and leaving the diner. It had felt familiar when she’d walked in, like the one she was used to in Insomnia, which made sense when she thought about it. Kal was from the Outlands and his diner reflected it. But, as familiar as it was, she hadn’t felt at home like she had at the Cauthess Plate. She was pretty sure it was more a matter of the people and not the location that made it feel like home.

            Thinking about that, she hurried across the lot to where she’d parked the car. She’d tried to find shade but there wasn’t any here. It had been a struggle to even leave him in the car. He’d been asleep and it hadn’t been simply her wanting to believe he was only asleep. Shaking fingers had felt for a pulse before she’d left him. She’d been positive she’d felt one but now she wasn’t sure if it had been her own in her finger tips.

            Liv stumbled and ran the rest of the way to the car. Her bags nearly slipped out of her hand as she hauled the door open. “Nyx?”

            He was still slumped in the seat and he sagged a little further as he lost the support of the door. A ragged noise left him and she shouldn’t have been as relieved as she was to hear it. It was full of pain but it meant he was still alive.

            “Sorry,” she murmured. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

            His lashes barely parted before they closed again. He tried to say something but she only heard his breathing.

            Swallowing hard, Liv’s hand shook as she reached for him. She stopped before touching him, having no idea where she’d even be able to put her hands without hurting him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered again.

            If he heard her, he didn’t react. He hadn’t reacted to much on their mad dash out of the city. A few mumbles here and there but never enough to make sense or loud enough for her to make out. She hated that she took comfort in whatever noise he made. The pained ones killed her little by little and she wished she could do something for him. But so long as he was making them, she knew he was alive.

            She reached out again, her fingers brushing against his hair. It seemed like the only place she could safely touch now, what with the red marks lashing across so much of his body. “Nyx?” she said softly.

            No reaction.

            “Nyx, please, I need you to drink something,” she continued.

            His eyes cracked open enough to see a slit of blue between his lashes.

            Her body ached looking at him. There’d been no time to try to treat him, all of her efforts focused on getting them out of Insomnia. She wished she’d done something now but she wasn’t a medic. What little she could do now wouldn’t be enough for him. But she had his attention and she needed to act.

            Rummaging in one of the bags, she pulled out the first bottle her fingers touched. She frowned at it, trying to hear Eerie’s voice in her head. “Blue,” she murmured, slipping it back into the bag. “I want blue.”

            She found one on the third pull and quickly popped the lid on it. Cupping the back of Nyx’s head, she gently tipped him back, pressing the bottle to his lips. “Drink,” she urged softly.

            His eyes closed and for a moment she thought he didn’t have the strength to even swallow.

            Biting her lip, Liv blinked back the tears forming in her eyes. She couldn’t cry yet. Not until they were safe. Once she found Eyra, she would allow herself to break. But not here, not now.

            She nearly cried in relief when Nyx’s lips parted and he swallowed the potion she poured into his mouth. “Half now,” she whispered to both of them. “Half in an hour to maximize the effects.”

            She thought he slanted a look at her as she pulled the bottle away, replacing the lid and fumbling with her phone to set a timer. She wasn’t sure and she chose to ignore it if he had.

            She watched as his tongue swiped across his lower lip, a sigh leaving him. “Sunshine?” he rasped.

            “Shh. Don’t speak.”

            “Sunshine, listen to me….”

            “No, you listen, Nyx Ulric,” she said firmly. “Shut up.”

            He definitely gave her a look this time and there was no ignoring it. But it didn’t last, sliding off his face as he sank back into the seat.

            Liv didn’t move from her spot, listening to him as all he did was breathe. It sounded like even that was painful to him and she didn’t know what else to give him. She’d gone into the shop first, wanting medicinal items over food, but she’d only been able to buy so much. A few potions and a single elixir were all that she’d managed to afford. She hoped it would be enough but a part of her was sure it wasn’t.

            “What are we going to do?” she whispered, mostly to herself as she slumped against the car. “Eerie’s not picking up her phone. I don’t know where to go. You’re…you’re….”

            “Everything alright, sugar?”

            Jumping at the voice, it took everything in her not to scream. She pressed a hand to her chest as she stared at the woman standing nearby. “W-What?”

            The woman pushed the cap back a little on her head, expression apologetic. “Sorry, hun. Didn’t mean to spook ya. Thought ya heard me comin’.”

            She hadn’t, completely lost in her own thoughts. “I’m s-sorry.”

            “Nothin’ to be sorry for.” She cocked her head, looking Liv over. “Ya alright?”

            A short, humourless laugh left Liv. She was anything but alright. “Fine,” she lied. She wasn’t going to spill her guts to a complete stranger. Not today. Not when Nyx’s life was hanging in the balance.

            The woman took a step forward before stopping as she got close enough to see in the car. “Holy-What happened to him?” she demanded, closing the distance between them.

            Or she tried to. Liv stepped between the stranger and Nyx, screwing up all the courage she had. “He was hurt when Insomnia fell,” she said lowly.

            “Sugar, he’s gone way past hurt,” the woman said tightly. “He needs a medic.”

            She knew that. She was trying to find one. “I know.”

            Green eyes moved over her face. “I know a pair,” she offered. “They ain’t been around here in a little while but I reckon I can figure out where they are if ya want.”

            Liv shook her head. “No, that’s okay. I know one. I just have to find her,” she muttered.

            “Honey,” the woman said lowly, her voice firm, “ya ain’t alright and neither is he. Ya both need help. I want to help ya.”

            “Why?” Liv blurted.

            “I don’t know what they tell ya in Crown City but we ain’t that bad out here,” she growled, taking the hat off to smack against her leg. “Ya need help and I’m offerin’ it. That such a foreign concept to city folk?”

            Shame flooded her and she tried to stammer out a response but her tongue wouldn’t work.

            “Dammit,” the woman muttered, pulling the hat back over her curly hair. “Look, I didn’t mean to lose my temper. Ya ain’t the first to roll through and ya haven’t done anythin’ to warrant that attitude from me. I just want to help.”

            Liv’s lower lip quivered. “My name’s Liv,” she offered. “And we really need help.”

            “Cindy,” she said, her face softening. “I’ll call the girls up but we should try to move him into the caravan. He ain’t gonna heal sittin’ in the car like that.”

            Her stomach lurched. The last time she’d moved Nyx, parts of his skin had been flaking off. His entire left arm was a mass of burns and all of the exposed flesh was cracked and scarred. It laced up his neck and across his face, like the fire that had marked him had come from within. He’d barely had the strength to lean against her as she’d drug him out of the crater he’d been in, stumbling more than walking. She didn’t know if he’d even be able to move now.

            “Liv?” Cindy coaxed gently.

            “He’s really hurt,” she blurted. “I don’t know if we can move him. He did something stupid and he’s paying for it and I don’t know what to do for him. I gave him half a potion like she said and I’ll give him the other half but I don’t think it’s going to work. Potions aren’t going to heal magic burn out. Will they? I don’t think they will. She never talked about that when she gave me lessons. I don’t know if anything’s going to work. Oh, god, I need to find her before he-”

            “Woah, woah, sugar, slow down,” Cindy cut in, grabbing her shoulders to shake her. “Easy there. Breathe.”

            Liv clamped her lips together, embarrassed that all of that had come out of her so fast. “I need to find his sister,” she pushed out, forcing herself to stick to those words. “She’s a medic.”

            Cindy glanced into the car again. “Huh, he Galahdian?”

            She blinked, stunned at the question. “Y-Yes? How did you…?”

            “The tattoos,” Cindy dismissed. “And his sister’s a medic?”

            Liv nodded.

            Cindy stared hard at her. “Eerie. You’re lookin’ for Eerie, ain’t ya?”

            Her heart leap into her throat. Cindy knew Eerie? She stuck to nodding when Cindy stared at her.

            She let out a slow breath, looking out at the small pitstop. “I don’t know where she is right now, sugar, but I got a damn good idea.”

            Liv nearly sobbed in relief. That was the best news she’d had in what felt like weeks.

            “But it ain’t gonna do ya any good today,” she continued. “The sun’s startin’ to go down and I ain’t lettin’ ya leave.”

            “No. I have to find Eerie!”

            “Sugar,” Cindy said with another shake. “The daemons will get ya faster than ya can find her. If I’m right, she’s all the way over in Lestallum and ya ain’t gonna make it there before the sun sets.”

            Liv looked into the car. Nyx didn’t have a lot of time but she didn’t want to do something stupid that would see them both getting killed. As much as she hated the thought of waiting, Cindy was right. They had to stay here. “I don’t have money for the caravan,” she whispered.

            “Ya’ll let me worry about that,” Cindy said, letting her go. “Friends of Eerie’s are friends of mine. I’ll take care of ya.”

            The kindness brought more tears to Liv’s eyes. It was more than she had expected coming out here and right now they needed that more than anything.


	2. Medic

            Blinking groggily, Eyra slowly admitted to herself she wasn’t asleep anymore. She didn’t know why she was awake and she didn’t like it. Had she even gotten any sleep? Her head throbbed a little but she wasn’t sure if it was from the heat or everything else. Probably a combination of both. Her body…well, it wasn’t lack of sleep that had her pleasantly aching.

            She smiled, burying her face back into her pillow. His arm was flung across her back, the rest of him stretched out beside her. He’d gotten no protests from her when he’d asked if he could spend the night again. Of course, he’d leaned over at dinner, murmuring his question in her ear, and she knew he’d made his voice that rumbly on purpose. Not that she would have said no if he hadn’t. They were planning on setting out tomorrow, following up on Talcott’s lead of a nearby Royal Tomb. She wanted as much time with him as possible and, after over a month away from him, she wasn’t opposed to most of it being in bed.

            Shifting, she cuddled closer to him and sighed as his arm tightened on her sleepily. There was no reason for her to be awake but she had a choice. She could snuggle in and go back to sleep or she could wake him up for more sex.

            Her toes dug into the sheets even as her body hummed. Eyra squirmed a little on the mattress, rubbing against it. With some gently coaxing she could probably get him onto his back and let her fingers wander over him. He wouldn’t protest waking up with her mouth on him. At least, he never had before and she didn’t think this time would be any different. All she had to do was-

            She froze when she heard a low noise. Lifting her head, she blinked at the room. The clock didn’t give off a lot of light and she’d made sure the curtains were fully drawn to keep out the lights of Lestallum. She pushed herself up enough to look to where the bathroom door was. It hadn’t sounded like Spooky and she couldn’t hear any whining which meant the dog was still alright. But if Gladio and the puppy were both asleep, what had made the noise?

            Her head turned in the other direction when it came again. She frowned in puzzlement at the phone on the bedside table. Why hadn’t Gladio put it on silent? Was one of the guys calling? But why wouldn’t they just come to the room?

            Shifting on the bed as it didn’t stop vibrating, she heard Gladio inhale deeply as she woke him. “Babe?” he mumbled.

            “I think the guys are calling,” she muttered, patting at the table to grab the phone. “Fuck,” she growled as she knocked it off the table.

            “Leave it, Eerie,” Gladio yawned. “It’s not my phone.”

            She’d started to lean over the edge of the bed to grab it but she paused. It wasn’t his? Oh. She’d forgotten that Ignis had given her a charger to replace the one Spooky had chewed. If someone was calling her, it couldn’t be that important, even if it was in the middle of the night. It was probably a wrong number. She’d gotten a few of them before her phone had completely died on her.

            Shivers ran through her as his hand trailed along her back, stroking down to the curve of her ass. “Big guy,” she breathed as he cupped her, fingers dipping between her legs.

            “Leave it,” he purred, kissing her shoulder.

            Her lashes fluttered as he kissed her again, moving over her back and starting to cover her with his body. She squinted at her phone as it went off again before frowning as she saw the name flashing up at her. Ignoring Gladio’s grunt, she leaned half off the bed to grab it. “Liv?” she said after answering it.

            _“Oh, my god, Eerie! You picked up!”_

She stiffened at Liv’s cry and felt Gladio freeze behind her as he no doubt heard it as well. No protest left her as he hauled her onto the bed, flipping her over. She gave him a puzzled look when he turned on the lamp and shrugged. “Liv, what’s going on? It’s two in the-”

           _“Are you in Lestallum?”_

Eyra sat up, giving Gladio a small push. When Liv got excited, she tended to interrupt people and she was used to it. But her friend sounded the exact opposite of excited. “Yes,” she said slowly. “Where are you?”

            _“I don’t know for sure. I’ve never been this far into the Outlands before.”_

Frowning, Eyra ran that over in her head. Liv couldn’t mean what she thought. “You’re at a town or a pitstop...right, Liv?” she asked slowly.

            There was a heavy silence on the other end of the phone and she caught something she hadn’t heard before. A tremor to Liv’s breathing, a catch that wasn’t always there but she could hear it now.

            “Liv, what happened?” Eyra demanded, swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

            Forget a tremor, Liv fully sobbed this time and it caused her stomach to plummet. _“I’ve been trying to call you! I have to find you! Cindy said you’re in Lestallum but I wasn’t sure and I had to be sure but I took a risk and I’m glad you’re in Lestallum but I forgot to-”_

_“Breathe, Sunshine.”_

She’d started to stand but she collapsed back onto the bed at that voice. “Nyx?” she whispered, her voice shaking this time. It couldn’t be him, he’d sounded completely wrecked, his voice harsh and low. She’d helped him out before when he’d been hurt on missions and during training but nothing like this. She had to be mistaken.

            But who else would be with Liv in the middle of the night?

            _“Eerie, we need help._ He _needs help.”_

            “Where are you?” she asked again. She felt the bed move but didn’t look at Gladio. Nyx had been in Insomnia. What had the guys said? That the Kingsglaive had been in charge of the Citadel security during the treaty signing? Had Nyx been in the middle of all of that when the Empire had betrayed them? She grimaced. Of course he was. Where else would he be? But what had happened to him?

           _“I don’t know. We ran out of gas and now we’re somewhere on the road.”_

Meaning they were outside of the city and the protection of the lights. “Why are you driving in the middle of the night?” Eyra demanded, her voice getting higher. “Liv! That’s asking for tr-”

           _“Nyx is dying!”_

There wasn’t any noise that left her as those words rang in her ears. She couldn’t have made one if she wanted to. Something was pressing on her lungs, squeezing the air from them and making it impossible for her to take a full breath. Nyx was…dying?

            _“Sunshine, don’t tell her that.”_

_“But you are!”_

_“Livia.”_

            Eyra nearly echoed the sob her friend made. His voice was raspy and there was no missing the coating of pain on it. But it was him. She knew it was him. “Nyx?” she choked out.

            _“Eerie, please,”_ Liv whispered. _“Please we can’t….”_

            “No!” she protested when Gladio took the phone from her. “Gladio!”

            He held her at arm's length for a moment before wrapping one around her and tugging her into him. He didn’t let her move, pinning her against his chest. “Liv, listen to me,” he said evenly. “Where were you coming from?”

            Eyra couldn’t hear her friend anymore. It might have been because he had the phone or due to the ringing in her ears. Nyx was dying? She knew he threw himself into everything he did, like he had something to prove to the people of Insomnia. But he’d always come back no matter what he’d gotten himself into. A little beat up sometimes but always in one piece.

            “Listen, Liv, you’ve done good but stay there. I know it doesn’t seem like a good idea but a moving car is more enticing of a target than anything else. Stay put and stay quiet.”

            Eyra looked up at him when he pulled away. “Gladio?” she whispered.

            He tossed the phone, cupping her face instead. “I need you to breathe, babe,” he said, his voice as calm as it was when he talked to Liv. “You’re no good to anyone if you stop.”

            She licked her lips, eyes darting over his face. How could he be so calm? Hadn't he heard what Liv said? Her brother was dying!

            “Breathe.”

            Sucking in a deep breath, she coughed slightly and squeezed her eyes shut. She grabbed his wrists, nails digging into him.

            “Eerie, stop thinking about your brother,” he told her.

            Her eyes popped open to stare at him.

            His thumbs rubbed slowly against her, stroking the tattoo under her eye. “I know, it sounds stupid, but I need you to stop,” he continued. “You think about your brother and you’re not gonna do anyone any good. I need you to treat this like any other emergency you’d respond to. Don’t think about it as family; think of it as a job.”

            She shook her head, brows drawing together. That was easy enough to say but this was Nyx, her brother, her family, one of the most important people in her life.

            “Babe, if you can’t do it I’m gonna have to find someone else to. You want someone else going out there to save-”

            “I’m going!” she snapped, her hands moving to shove his chest.

            He didn’t even budge except for the corner of his mouth kicking up. “Then get your stuff, babe, and let’s go.”

            She blinked at him as he let her go to leave the bed. “You’re coming?” she asked dumbly.

            Gladio gave her a look that had her feeling even stupider. “I’m not trusting someone else to watch your back,” he told her. He left the rest of it unsaid but of course he was coming with her. What was she going to do? Fight the daemons on her own?

            She stared for a moment longer, watching as he stooped down to grab his pants, before she scrambled off the bed. Every second she wasted here was a second that Liv and Nyx lost and they couldn’t afford to lose any out there.

            Tugging on a pair of shorts, she didn’t bother with underwear as she searched for a shirt. As soon as she had the clothes on, she started shoving things into a bag. Bandages, medkit, what potions and supplies she had. She didn’t know what had happened to Nyx so she had no idea what to bring. There wasn't time to try to get an ambulance even though she was sorely tempted to steal one.

            “Ready?”

            Eyra looked up to see Gladio fully dressed and standing near the door. Her heart was in her throat and she was still having a hard time breathing. “Keys?” she croaked.

            He held them up, along with her phone.

            She stuffed her feet into a pair of shoes and started toward him, bag in hand. “Ready,” she whispered.

            He stroked her cheek with a knuckle before he was leading her out of the room.

            It was hard to do what he wanted, to not think about her brother and Liv. In her high of seeing Gladio alive, she’d temporarily forgotten about all the other people she was missing. They’d still been in the back of her mind but she’d ignored it in the day and a half she’d had with him. If she hadn’t, would she have gotten in contact with Liv sooner? No, she’d only gotten the replacement charger this afternoon. Liv had probably been calling her for longer than that but if she hadn’t left the phone in her room they could have found them with a little bit of sunlight left in the day.

            When they hit the base of the stairs, Eyra grabbed his hand. There was no way she could hide the shaking in her fingers from him but she was glad that he didn’t comment on it, only gently squeezing her back.

            He led her out of the hotel, into Lestallum’s heat and what few people were still scattered out on the streets. They wove through the alleys to the parkade and went straight to where her car was parked.

            Eyra stared blankly at her hand when he pressed the keys into it. “I’m driving?”

            “It’ll be better for both of us,” Gladio told her. “If I have to get out fast, it’ll be easier if I’m not crammed behind the wheel and you can focus on driving instead of whatever else is going on in that head of yours.”

            Her face scrunched. She didn’t feel like she was in any shape to be driving. Not at night while the daemons were out.

            He ran his hands over her hair, fingers buried in the strands as he tipped her up to look at him. “Eyra,” he said softly, “listen to me, you can do this. It’s a medical emergency just like the ones you dealt with back in Insomnia. Just like what you’ve dealt with out here. Who’s having the emergency doesn’t matter.”

            “But-!”

            “Baby, it doesn’t matter,” he repeated. “We’re going to go out there, get them, and you’re going to treat Nyx like you would any other patient. Horrible bedside manner and all.”

            “I’ve gotten better,” she said grumpily.

            He kissed her forehead before pressing a hard kiss to her mouth. “No. You haven’t.”

            Her fingers curled around the keys as he let her go, walking around the car to his side. She had gotten better and most of the grumpiness was usually saved for friends and family stupid enough to get hurt.

            “C’mon, babe.”

            She didn’t stomp to the car but she came close. Tossing her bag into the backseat, she slid behind the wheel and glanced at him when he chuckled. “You did that on purpose,” she muttered.

            “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

            Her nose wrinkled as she started the car and pulled away. Her hands were still shaking and she didn’t think they were going to stop, but she kept them as steady as she could.

            “East exit, babe,” he told her as she got to the main road. “They’re coming in from Hammerhead.”

            Liv had said something about Cindy. Would make sense they would have stopped there. She let out a slow breath and listened to Gladio as he called Ignis, letting him know what was going on. The lights in the tunnel out of town were nearly as bright as the ones inside but they had her stomach squirming.

            She’d been outside after dark before, outside of city limits, but she’d always been at a haven. Hadn’t been easy that first time, what with being able to hear the animals and daemons out in the night. Hadn’t been easy trusting the magic in those stones to hold and keep all of the terrors at bay. Still wasn’t easy if she was completely honest about it and she fell asleep most nights clutching Spooky to her chest.

            Knowing that Liv and Nyx were out there, in a car out of gas, on the road and with no magic to protect them-

            Eyra inhaled sharply. No magic. The king was dead. Even if he was in better shape, Nyx wouldn’t have any way to protect the two of them beyond a pair of kukri. That wasn’t enough, no matter how skilled a fighter you were.

            “Eerie, stop.”

            “Talk to me,” she whispered, seeing the end of the tunnel coming up. “Please.”

            “I will if you promise to keep our speed even. No sudden bursts or changes. We’re bound to draw attention but any harsh changes will make it look like we’re fleeing.”

            “Gladio,” she pleaded, her hands tightening on the wheel as they left the tunnel and the protection of Lestallum.

            “You remember that book you got me before you left the city? For my birthday?”

            “Yeah, of course,” Eyra said, confused.

            “Started reading it the other day, after the city fell,” he murmured. “When I couldn’t get a hold of you, it was the only thing keeping me grounded.”

            She pressed her lips together and forced herself not to cry. How many people had tried to get a hold of her and couldn’t? Her mother? Her uncle? Libertus? Nyx and Liv? She already knew Iris had tried calling because she’d been told but how many others? How many had wondered where she was and if she was okay?

            Shaking the thought away, she focused on Gladio’s voice as he told her more about the book. Of course he’d finished it already. She hadn’t expected it to last long but she was surprised he’d devoured it so quickly. But she listened as he told her what he’d liked about it, the twists he’d figured out, everything he could.

            It kept her distracted enough that she was surprised when she saw a car in the distance.

            “Slow down, babe, but don’t stop near them.”

            “What?”

            “Eerie, if we’re too close I’m not going to have room to move to defend us. Park across the road from them.”

            She swallowed the trepidation that statement caused in her and gradually slowed but didn’t stop beside them. Instead she drove past them and pulled a u-turn.

            “Good plan,” Gladio said quietly as she parked on the opposite side of the road, a little ahead of Liv.

            “Gladio,” she said softly, hating that the car was dark and she couldn’t see the other people.

            “Stay here,” he told her. “Wait for my signal but move fast when you get out there. Get them and get back to the car. You can start treating him in the backseat but we aren’t staying here.”

            Eyra nodded and didn’t resist him as he pulled her across the car to kiss her. “I love you,” she whispered.

            “I love you too and we’re getting out of here, babe.”

            She watched him slide out of the car and didn’t hesitate. She shoved her seat back and crawled over the console to his seat. She watched him as he moved down the road, his head swinging back and forth as he checked the area. Spots appeared in her eyes and she sucked in a harsh breath. Not what she needed to do right now. She wasn’t going to be able to help anyone if she passed out because she was holding her breath.

            Eyra scrambled out of the car when he motioned to her, grabbing onto the door to keep her upright. She hurried across the pavement and nearly slammed into the other car. She heard a yelp from inside and quickly said, “Liv?”

            “Eerie?!”

            She almost wanted to tease her friend because who else would be out here in the middle of the night saying her name? But she had just called for her friend in the middle of nowhere when she’d come specifically looking for her. “Open the door, Liv,” she said. “I need to-”

            The door was shoved open, nearly knocking her down again. Liv came into view, the interior light casting shadows on her but not enough for her to miss the expression on her face. It matched how she’d sounded on the phone. Which meant she wasn’t lying about anything she’d said.

            Eyra stared at her for a moment, telling herself she was checking for any apparent injuries. She knew she was stalling. She could smell it on the air, not only the almost sickly sweet scent of potions but…. Her stomach slammed into her spine before dropping to her feet as she leaned further down, looking across the car. “Nyx?” she whispered.

            If he responded at all, she didn’t see it.

            How was she supposed to keep this professional when she could see him? Burns, cracks, cuts, everything littered his visible skin to the point where she wasn’t sure there was an inch of it that was free from harm.

            “Eyra!”

            She jerked back from the car, staring in horror as she saw Gladio had moved behind the cars and his sword was in hand. “Fuck,” she said, grabbing Liv’s arm and hauling her out. “Get to the car.”

            “No!” Liv said immediately, barely moving.

            Pursing her lips, Eyra tried to ignore the whining sound she could hear, knowing a daemon was getting closer. “Then help me!” she snapped, rushing around the car. They couldn’t have a lot of time. She hadn’t seen a daemon form but she’d heard the noises in the night. This was not a noise she wanted to hear.

            Despite her need to hurry, she carefully opened the door. It didn’t seem to matter as Nyx half tumbled out of it without the door propping him up. “Shit,” she gasped, reaching for him and grabbing without thought.

            Her heart broke when a ragged groan slipped out him, pain coating every sound.

            “I’m sorry,” she whispered, lifting him to his feet. Or trying to. He was dead weight in her hands. “Liv!”

            Her brother weakly reached out, a mumble leaving him.

            “Liv!” she repeated, panic rising as she heard the clash of steel. They needed to go and she couldn’t carry Nyx on her own. She couldn’t pull Gladio away from defending them so she needed Liv’s help. “Now!”

            A second set of hands braced against his back, drawing a hiss from Nyx and a sob from Liv.

            Gladio’s words rang in her ears as she ducked down to hook his arm across her shoulders. “Not your brother,” she whispered to herself, trying to shift him away from the car. “Not your brother, just an emergency.”

            “E-Eerie?”

            She heard a grunt come from behind them and steeled herself. “Liv, brace his other side.”

            “But his arm!”

            “Be careful but brace him. We need to move.”

            Liv made another noise and Eyra felt Nyx’s weight sag onto her more as she moved. It started to even out after a second but Eyra tugged a little to keep more on her.

            Looping her fingers into his belt, she tried not to think about how it was through a hole in his coat. It was still slow going, getting him around the car as his feet drug more than took any steps. She listened to the sound of his breathing, trying to figure out where she should start. But the sounds coming from so close, of daemon and her boyfriend, were louder and made her heart pound.

            She nearly dropped her brother when she heard the clash of steel and a heavy grunt. “Gladio?”

            “Hurry the fuck up, Eerie!”

            Biting down on the inside of her cheek, she focused solely on getting them to her car. “Liv, get the door.”

            “Are you-”

            “Door!”

            Her friend inhaled sharply and she felt Nyx sway as she lost the help balancing him. She didn’t get to brace her feet fast enough to support them both. Twisting as much as she could, Eyra grunted as they fell into the car and Nyx slammed into her.

            “S’lena?”

            Her breath caught at the mumble and she was glad they were slumped into the car. Tears pricked at her eyes as she held him. Was he confused because of blood loss that he thought she was their sister? Or was he that close to dying that he could see her? “I’ve got you, Nyx,” she whispered. “I’ve got you. Please. Please don’t go.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realised after posting the first chapter that there’s really no back information on Liv which is my bad. She’s fully fleshed out in my head and conversations I have with princetheirins and one day I’ll post more stories about her and Nyx’s relationship. Or I’ll gently prod her to post some things.


	3. Alive

            “Shit! I don’t have what I need!”

            “Use what you’ve got, babe.”

            “I am but it’s not enough!”

            “I’m driving as fast as I can!”

            A groan left him, straining his throat. What was going on? He knew the voices but why would they-

            “N-Nyx?”

            Livia? Why did she sound so scared? Something pressed to his mouth and he swallowed reflexively. The laced potion was a balm on his throat but it still hurt. Everything hurt.

            “Brother,” a soft whisper.

            Eerie? That wasn’t right. She wasn’t in Insomnia anymore. He hadn’t talked to her in so long. What was she doing here? Hands pressed to him as the world lurched and he heard harsh swearing amid choked noises before everything went dark again.

            “Holy shit! Eerie, you didn’t say he was this bad!”

            “Just help me move him!”

            The voices pulled him out of the darkness but not very far. His body was heavy, unresponsive. His thoughts slow, sluggish.

            “Keep pressure on it! It’s bleeding again!”

            “The fuck did he do, Eerie?!”

            “Just put pressure on it, Dusty!”

            He wanted to groan as something pushed on his stomach, pain swamping him. But no sound left him. It was hard to breathe as the weight stayed where it was. His vision was dark; no, everything was dark. Thoughts slowly started coming back to him amid the tense chatter he could hear.

            Had the sun risen? Was he out of time? Had he succeeded? There was warmth on his skin. The sun had to have risen. No. That wasn’t warmth. Heat. Burning.

            His skin was on fire.

            A loud sound filled his ears, tearing at his throat, but several voices broke through it.

            “Fuck!”

            “Eerie, shit! Get him to stop!”

            “Nyx?!”

            “Nyx! Nyx, can you hear me?!”

            The ragged scream died on his tongue as something pressed to his lips. He choked as liquid filled his mouth, his instincts still wanting to scream in pain. Everything was on fire, his arm burning from the inside and consuming him. He had to get it out. How did he get it out?!

            “Drink it, Nyx,” a tearful voice whispered. “It’ll help. I promise it’ll help.”

            Swallowing hurt but he responded to the plea. He was helpless not to. He hated hearing her cry, hated even more when he was the cause of it. Each swallow dulled the flames a little more and he became desperate for it when his mouth was dry. He tried to beg for more but beyond that scream nothing would come.

            Shaking fingers touched his forehead and cold lips followed. “Sleep,” she whispered.

            Sleep? Wasn’t he supposed to….

            Jolting, Nyx’s eyes opened before immediately closing as harsh light assaulted them. He tried to take a breath to steady himself and pain flared in his gut. His hands planted on whatever he was on, starting to push, but there was no strength in him to even budge.

            He decided that lying there, wherever he was, taking shallow breaths, was probably the best course of action right now. At least until he figured out what the fuck was going on.

            It seemed like there was nothing wrong with his ears and he strained to pick up anything that would give him some clue of where he was. There wasn’t a lot of noise, not that was coming from immediately around him at least. He thought he could hear people nearby, talking and being generally loud, as if they were passing by on the street. The accent was different, one he’d heard on occasion but not what he’d grown accustomed to in Insomnia. He couldn’t place it though.

            He got distracted by a steady sound coming from nearby that he only noticed when it stopped. A shower? Where was he? He couldn’t be at home, the bed was far better than what he owned. Liv’s? No. Her bed didn’t feel like this either. Where the fuck was he?

            Impatience ate at him as he waited for more sounds, for anything really. He needed something, someone to tell him where he was and fill in the blanks of his memory. There were too many dark spots when he tried to think about what had happened.

            A door opened, followed by the scent of soap and hot air. He strained, listening to the quiet footfalls as they moved through the room. They weren’t Liv’s steps. He knew hers off by heart from listening to her move around his small apartment and hers. He felt like he should know them but he couldn’t place them.

            His body tensed as a cloth he hadn’t even known was there was lifted from his brow. Damp skin touched his, the back of a hand pressing to his forehead. He knew who it was. Not only because she was checking his temperature but because of the scent of the soap wafting over him now. Vanilla and pomegranates. If it had the latter, she was all over it.

            Eyra. It was his sister beside him.

            “I know you’re awake,” she said suddenly, her voice low and raspy. “Can you open your eyes?”

            Remembering the harsh light that had struck him the last time he had, he wasn’t sure he wanted to.

            “Nyx?”

            He went slowly this time, cracking them open a little at first. The light still stung at him and he barely opened them.

            “Shit, sorry. It is bright in here isn’t it?”

            He tracked her through the room as it darkened slightly, barely, but it was enough to open his eyes further. She was blurry as she came back to him and no amount of blinking seemed to cure it.

            “Easy,” she said softly. “You’ve…been through a lot.”

            His body felt like it had been a behemoth’s chew toy. He’d had rough days before but this was taking the cake.

            She sighed, pushing her hair back. “You are so fucking lucky,” she muttered, sitting on the bed. “If Liv hadn’t…fuck.”

            Nyx watched her rub her face. Something nagged at him but he couldn’t put his finger on it. “Liv?” he asked huskily.

            “Shh, you sound like shit. Hold on.”

            That wasn’t the answer he wanted but his eyes followed her and he waited.

            She didn’t go far, rummaging on the side table. One hand gingerly slid under his head to lift him and a bottle pressed to his lips. “It’s tea and a potion,” she explained when he didn’t drink immediately. “It won’t knock you out. Promise.”

            He eyed her but swallowed the entire thing.

            Eyra fiddled with the pillows to prop his head a little and sat back down. “She is knocked out though,” she admitted. “She wouldn’t go to sleep, hadn’t slept since she found you in Insomnia. I gave her something when I was sure you weren’t going to…going to die.”

            Die? Memories twinged at him. Destiny? Betrayal? A deal?

            “I’d feel bad but she was only hurting herself the way she was going. She needed rest so once you were as stable as we could get you, we bundled her into the shower, I checked her over, made her eat, and knocked her out after.”

            It sounded aggressive and if anyone else had said it, he would have been worried. “Where are we?” he asked lowly, spacing out the words.

            “Lestallum. I’ve been here a lot for supplies and shifts at the clinics. Which was so fucking lucky. Both times.” She paused and started putting her braids back in her hair. “If you want specifics, the Leville Hotel and my room. You’re hogging my bed and Liv’s hogging the couch.”

            His mouth twitched. That sounded more like her. But the half smile slid off his face. It didn’t take a genius to see she was exhausted. Even with the blurriness in his eyes, he could tell she was tired. What had she said? That he’d nearly died and Liv hadn’t slept?

            She tied off her braids and tossed them over her shoulder with the rest of her hair. “I need to check you over,” she said, pushing off the bed. “Change you bandages. Make sure you’re healing.”

            There wasn’t anything he could do to stop her and what few words he’d said had already hurt his throat. He waited as she left the bed, heard her quietly moving in the room. He knew it was impossible but he tried to figure out where Liv was. Frustration licked at him when he couldn’t hear anything to indicate she was even in the room. He didn’t think his sister would lie to him but he still wanted that reassurance.

            It must have showed on his face because Eyra hesitated as she came back to the bed. “Wait a second,” she said, putting her things down.

            What else was he going to do at this point? She was barely gone for a minute before she was coming back with her phone in her hand. He was confused before she turned it around to show him the picture she’d taken. Of Liv sleeping on the couch. “Sunshine,” he breathed, trying to take the phone.

            “Nyx, take it easy,” Eyra said softly. “Your body is barely holding it together right now. I’ll give you the phone later but for now I need you to just relax. She’s okay and sleeping. Let her sleep.”

            It wasn’t like he could do anything but what she said. His gaze still followed the phone as she set it aside before he closed his eyes.

            There were gentle tugs on his arms as Eyra moved them and he didn’t need to look to know she was removing bandages. She’d been putting them on him for ten years now, always using him as practise when he’d come back to Insomnia in rougher shape than when he’d left. He’d never asked but a part of him knew the reason she’d become a medic was because of how often she’d patched him up over the years. It had started with little yellow chocobo bandaids and graduated to stitches and potions. Or saving his life.

            His left arm throbbed and he frowned. She wasn’t even touching it, why was it acting up? Cool air struck him as she shifted the light blanket off him and a shiver wound through him.

            “You’ve cooled off enough I could probably turn the air conditioner down,” Eyra murmured, “but I’m not turning it off. It’s disgusting how hot it gets here.”

            He wanted to remind her she was from a nearly tropical island, that whatever temperature was considered hot here probably didn’t compare to Galahd. But she had only had six years there and he didn’t have the breath to speak.

            A hiss left him as she carefully lifted his left arm, his head turning to her. He tensed as he saw the exposed skin between the bandages.

            “Don’t look at it,” Eyra told him, reaching out to turn his head away. “As bad as it seems, you are healing. Took nearly all the potions and elixirs me and Dusty had but you’re healing.”

            _That_ was him healing? He didn’t want to know what he’d looked like if this was him healing. He’d been hurt before, pushed himself too far before, but this was…this was…what happened when you made a deal with the Lucii.

            “Nyx?” she asked tightly.

            He wouldn’t have thought he’d be able to move his arm, much less grab hers and squeeze the way he was. But he was back to staring at the arm, staring at the damage he had willingly done to himself in that fight to give the princess enough time to get out of the city and stop a betrayer. “Fuck,” he breathed. The deal. How was he still alive? They’d put a claim on his life and the sun had clearly risen. Several times if he thought about it.

            “Nyx?”

            He was scaring her. She was usually so good at hiding it but she was exhausted. And, more than that, his baby sister. There wasn’t a lot she could hide from him. It took a lot of effort to get his fingers to uncurl from around her arm and they ached as soon as he did.

            Eyra was still staring at him, wanting answers but what did he even begin to say to her? When he stayed silent, she sighed and went back to bandaging him. “You’ve done this before,” she whispered, tossing aside the wrappings she took off his arm. “Not to this degree but this is overburn. Just once could you show some restraint when it comes to using magic?”

            Her voice was steady but he could feel the tremble in her fingers.

            “But I guess it’s not an issue now.” Her face twisted and she shook her head suddenly. “Fuck, that sounds so bad. So many people died, including the king, and here I am being crass about you not being able to use magic anymore.”

            “Ree,” he said softly.

            “Don’t ‘Ree’ me,” she snapped. “You’re not the one that had to drive out in the middle of the god damn night to get you! You’re not the one that didn’t sleep because you had to put your brother back together enough that he didn’t die! Nyx, what were you even thinking?! Did you even stop using magic long enough to breathe?!”

            Nyx stared at her. The memories were there now, all the things he’d done from the moment he’d walked away from Liv that morning of the treaty signing to the sun rising as he collapsed in a crater. And all the things he hadn’t done in that same time. “I was fighting for our future,” he pushed out.

            She opened her mouth before shaking her head. “No, I’m not going to get mad at you right now,” she muttered to herself.

            He didn’t believe her for a second. She always got mad whenever he got hurt and he knew it was only going to get worse when she found out why he’d gotten so badly injured. Because she was going to find out. He would tell her. She deserved to know. She had saved his life and she was some of the only family he had left. He had to tell her.

            But not right now. He didn’t have the words right now to tell her the names of those that had died at the hands of betrayal or the deal he’d made with his life as the price. He couldn’t tell her about that now when he didn’t know why he was still alive.

            For all he knew, the Lucii could claim him at any minute and all her hard work would be for naught. She’d lose him and not be able to do a thing about it.

            No. He couldn’t tell her yet.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, technically, potions and the like in game say that they work because of the Lucian magic but you know what? They’re sold in stores that anyone can buy them. As far as I’m concerned, it’s not magic that drives them, but science! ...and maybe a little magic.

**Author's Note:**

> This has been in the works for a long time and I finally realised I should start posting it. It's been a labour since it hurts to write it but it's worth it in the end. Liv, the cutest Archivist the Citadel's ever seen, belongs to my dear friend princetheirins on tumblr and the story and so much of my ideas wouldn't come about without our flailing at each other.


End file.
